


drown in the pain or go dance in the rain

by toadstool71



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: (Implied) Depressed Keith, Angst, Concept, Crying, Drowning, Ghosts, I can't write long things, I wrote this on a whim, Implied/Referenced Character Death, Keith (Voltron) is a Mess, M/M, Realization, Short One Shot, Sorry Not Sorry, i can't write, i'm in a mood, is the major death tag necessary?, oh he's a ghost now, probably, this whole thing is a mess
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-11
Updated: 2018-05-11
Packaged: 2019-05-05 04:46:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 490
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14609643
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/toadstool71/pseuds/toadstool71
Summary: Lance is oblivious until Keith comes home disheveled. A short crisis ensues.





	drown in the pain or go dance in the rain

**Author's Note:**

> title comes from the song One of Us by New Politics

 

Lance wakes in his house alone; the other side of the bed cold. He gets up, groggy mind barely acknowledging the deathly quiet and lack of cold in his feet as they cross the wood flooring of his room.

 

He takes the hall to the living room and sprawls on the small couch. _I’m not hungry? That’s weird. I hope he brings some food home, though._

 

As if the mere mention of Keith in his thoughts summoned him, the door unlocks and opens.

 

Keith looks _tired_. He’s pale, dark circles accentuating red rimmed, droopy eyes. His shoulders slump, his feet drag, and his hair is unkempt.

 

Lance feels a wave of panic shoot through him. He’s immediately in front of Keith, ready to comfort and dote when--

 

Keith steps forward.

 

Towards-- No _through_ Lance.

 

As if--

 

All of the breath in Lance-- if there really was any --feels as if it’s punched out of him.

 

Lance is frozen thinking, _What? Keith, I… I can’t--? Am I-- I’m…?_

 

His eyes sting as it all clicks. The emptiness, lack of cold, of hunger, Keith’s appearance, how he _walked through him_. It all comes back.

 

The memories are a flood. A tad ironic. Him and Keith had gone to a nearby lake. Lance prided himself in being an amazing swimmer, but even that couldn’t save him in this scenario.

 

* * *

 

 

_The cliff was only roughly twenty-five to thirty feet high. It dropped straight into the deep lake. Keith opted to stay behind at the blanket they’d set up for a picnic date._

_Lance dove over the edge. Into the cold water with a splash._

_He sunk, a tad deeper than anticipated, but thought nothing of it. He kicked his legs behind him, fully expecting to propel upwards and break the surface for air._

_Instead, his foot snagged on something. Most likely fishing line, possibly a plant of sorts._

_Fear clouded his thoughts. He was_ so close _._

_His attempts to untangle his foot proved futile and by the time Keith had come to see what was taking so long, his oxygen was depleted._

 

_Keith found him shortly, floating a foot underwater._

 

 

* * *

 

Lance holds a hand to his mouth, squeezes his eyes shut. He chokes on a sob and lets his tears spill over.

 

He sucks in a sharp breath when a thought crosses his mind, _I can still try to talk to him._

 

Lance rushes to the messy dining table and scrambles for paper and a pen. He blinks a few times to clear his vision and starts writing.

 

> _Keith,_
> 
> _I’m here. I’m still here. I know you’re a skeptic, but believe it this once, yeah?_ ~~_I’m a gho_ ~~ _I’m definitely going to haunt you. Okay, probably too soon. I’m not leaving, though. I can’t leave, my love. Know that._
> 
> _-Lance_

 

Teardrops somehow smudge the ink. He leaves the paper on the table and can only hope that Keith will be able to read it.

 

**Author's Note:**

> ~~i feel like the ending's week ;A;~~


End file.
